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Iowa man saves couple stranded at rail crossing

A 38-year-old Iowa bank worker is being hailed as a hero for pushing an elderly couple's stalled car from a railroad crossing seconds before a train whizzed by.

Chris Ihle told The Des Moines Register that he jumped off his motorcycle to help Wednesday because the Pontiac Bonneville wasn't budging from the Ames crossing despite the train bearing down.

Ihle says he screamed at the couple to move but they didn't, so he tried pushing the car forward, but it wouldn't budge. He moved to the car's front, told the occupants to make sure it was in neutral, dug in his cowboy boots and heaved.

Ihle pushed the car about 5 feet to safety seconds before the train screeched by. It missed the father of three by inches.

“I really thought we weren’t going to make it,” said Jean Papich, who was stuck with her husband, Marion Papich.

Marion and Jean have been married for 55 years.

Union Pacific Railroad officials said those who find themselves stuck on the tracks should get out and call 911.

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